by Matthew Mulville

Created on: August 17, 2008

Uncertain uncertainty. Uncertainty itself is certainly in high volume. To say that something is uncertain is the closest we can get to certainty. A general certainty is then found. It's the most obvious of the certainties. From that, we can form more certainties.

What is certainty? It is the ability to tell yourself that you know something to be true. Yes, but that is the specific definition of certainty. In this specific definition of certainty, it is almost an emotion. It is the complete absence of doubt. It is undying security in a belief. When someone is certain about something, they will not stray from that certainty unless they see or experience something of more certainty or a new certainty that proves the other an error. On the other hand we have specific uncertainty. That is the partial or total absence of certainty; or, the presence of doubt. It may also be defined as an inability to know something to be true. Yet we are still discussing only specific uncertainty. Exclusive to only one individual and their beliefs. With that said, I would call it individual uncertainty. It is an uncertainty that may or may not be an uncertainty for another individual. To bring religion into this vast discussion of uncertainty, I will say that one individual can feel certain about the existence of a God while another individual may feel certain about the non-existence of a God. At the same time, there may also be individuals who feel uncertain of the subject altogether. All three individuals, despite varying beliefs, share one thing in common; they all possess an individual certainty or uncertainty while none of them express a general certainty.

General certainties need to apply to every individual. If this occurs, the certainty is accepted. You may say that you are certain that you will not know what will happen tomorrow. That is simply a variation of the general certainty of the existence of uncertainty. How about if someone says that they are certain they were alive yesterday? That individual has memory of experiences that they perceived to have happened earlier in time. This suggests to them that they must have been alive during the time of the experiences. Depending upon the perception of the word "alive", they would have then stated a general certainty. However, since there IS a dependence on the perception of the word "alive", they may have only stated an individual certainty. To further support the original general certainty which states that uncertainty is present, we can break the sentence up into each word. The statement is: Uncertainty Exists. Uncertainty is the absence of certainty. Exists means that it is a concept perceived by humans to be around us or in us or affecting us in some way, whether physical or purely conceptual or emotional. Since uncertainty is either an emotion or concept perceived by humans to affect us, it can exist.

But wait a second... So then God, since it is a concept or something that affects us in some way, can exist? So long as it is a certainty for everyone, it will be a general certainty. This is definitely not the case, however. It will likely never be the case. A general certainty must go for every single individual that is able to set foot upon the idea.

Most people, on this subject, will write about how they feel when they are faced with uncertainty. Maybe they will write about all the different uncertainties that they feel are important to them. Some may write about the one "true" certainty of God's existence. Many will try to inform people that life is a very unstable gift that needs to be handled with care and enjoyed. They are all very good but they are all very much the same; a simple projection of the emotions and morals or beliefs of the author.

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